Belgium: EU-UK deal for 2023 fisheries access agreed

A plan determining renewed short-term access for EU fishing boats for important fish stocks shared between the EU and the UK was approved by the EU Council in late December, the Commission announced. The deal on “fishing opportunities” sets total allowable catches (TACs) for EU and UK fishermen, separately, for 2023, and for certain deep-sea stocks for 2023-2024.

In the North Atlantic and North Sea, the exclusive economic zone (EEZ) of the EU abuts that of the UK, creating a boundary that fishing boats normally cannot cross but that fish populations normally can and do. Managing these fish stocks therefore requires bilateral EU-UK cooperation in the setting of TACs and other management tools.

The plan recently announced is required by the 2020 EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement, a result of the Brexit negotiations. With respect to bilaterally shared fishery resources, the Trade and Cooperation Agreement provides for annual modifications of the joint management of shared fisheries by the EU and the UK, in particular annual changes in TACs. The annual fisheries plan must take into account:

• international obligations

• the recommended maximum sustainable yield (MSY) for each species, to ensure the long-term sustainability of fishing in line with the common fisheries policy

• the best available scientific advice, with a precautionary approach taken where such advice is not available as the English Channel, the Irish Sea, and the North Sea. For example, there are separate TACs for haddock in the Irish Sea and those in the waters of Portugal, and separate TACs for herring in the Eastern English Channel and those in the Irish Sea.

• the need to protect the livelihoods of fishermen and women.

Jousting over the EU-UK fisheries deal is not yet over: during the “adjustment period” until 30 June 2026 part of the EU quota share will be transferred to the UK. After 1 July 2026 EU-UK access to waters and fishing opportunities will be negotiated annually.

The annual plan negotiations normally also include Norway and the Faroes to avoid a separate agreement between those countries and the EU and one with the UK on much of the same fish stocks, and for the first time the latest negotiations were joined by Greenland and Iceland for the same reason. About 100 species are included in the access agreement, ranging from Norway lobster and other shellfish to cod and other demersal species, to mackerel and other pelagic species. Following ICES advice, TACs are traditionally set for each species in each of several geographic areas, such

Aside from the controversial but real question about Member States adequately enforcing the TACs, the agreement is a step forward, according to the EU Council. The deal helps protect the health of both the fishing industry and the fish stocks. If the continued downturn in the latter is not arrested, the former will continue to suffer too. Many TACs in the new agreement represent reductions in previous years’ TACs, which in principle will allow some severely stressed fish stocks to recover. Overall, the EU-UK deal provides EU fishers with over 300,000 tonnes of fish and shellfish “fishing opportunities,” in the words of the Council. UK fishermen have access to 140,000 tonnes of fish, which the UK Fisheries Minister claimed makes UK fishermen “30,000 tonnes better off now that we are outside the EU than we would’ve been if we’d remained as a member state,” referring to an estimated total UK TAC for 2023 had the UK remained in the EU.

Estonia: Fifth Baltic Sea Fisheries Forum to focus on fishing fleet management

The fifth Baltic Sea Fisheries Forum will take place in Tallinn, Estonia on 12 April 2023. This year’s event will take place at the T1 Mall of Tallinn, and it is also possible to participate remotely. The forum will focus on managing fleets to achieve the objectives of the Common Fisheries Policy.

According to the European Union’s Common Fisheries Policy, the purpose of adjusting fleet capacity to fishing opportunities is to achieve economically viable fleets. At the same time, to ensure that fishing activities are environmentally sustainable in the long term, total allowable catches (TAC) are set based on maximum sustainable yield (MSY). Given this, is the management of fishing fleets then necessary? Fisheries experts from different countries will share their experience with modern fisheries management system and try to answer to this question. EU policy makers, scientists and representatives from the fisheries sector are welcome to participate in the forum. More information will shortly be available on the Baltic Sea Fisheries Forum website (https://worksup. com/app?id=balticfi shery2023), so save the date!